\tActivist investor Constructive Capital pushed Telenor to spin off its mobile masts and increase debt, a move it believes could boost the Norway-based operator\u2019s share price by up to 84 per cent.<\/p>\n
In a letter seen by Financial Times (FT), Constructive Capital urged the operator to separate out its masts arm after major operators including Telecom Italia, Vodafone Group [1] and BT were all linked to a similar move.<\/p>\n
The investor, which reportedly owns an indirect stake in Telenor of below the 5 per cent disclosure threshold, believes spinning out infrastructure assets could boost share price and \u201ccreate new growth opportunities for Telenor by enabling acquisitions using Telenor\u2019s share price as currency\u201d.<\/p>\n
As part of the strategy shift, Constructive Capital also urged Telenor to switch NOK75 billion ($8.8 billion) of its funding from equity to debt, suggesting the operator could support high debt levels.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe board currently has a unique opportunity to both facilitate this and at the same time create very lasting value for Telenor shareholders,\u201d Constructive Capital stated in the letter.<\/p>\n
FT noted operator shares have failed to keep up with the broader financial markets in recent years, despite once being lauded for delivering steady dividends to shareholders.<\/p>\n
Telenor\u2019s share price is down 3 per cent over the past year, standing at NOK164.25 at close on Friday (25 January), the same level as it was four years ago.<\/p>\n
Responding to the letter, Telenor said: \u201cThe board and management welcome feedback from stakeholders. However, we won\u2019t comment on specific details of this letter.”<\/p>\n
Telenor, which is majority owned by the government, has stepped up its focus on the Nordics after selling operations in Russia, India and eastern Europe in recent years.<\/p>\n[1] https:\/\/www.mobileworldlive.com\/featured-content\/home-banner\/incoming-vodafone-boss-considers-e12b-tower-sale\/<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Activist investor Constructive Capital pushed Telenor to spin off its mobile masts and increase debt, …<\/p>\n
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